Former President Donald Trump said Friday that if he’s elected again, mass deportations will first target Springfield, Ohio, and Aurora, Colorado, two cities cited by the Republican nominee in recent days as examples of places overrun by criminal migrants, despite that officials in both towns have disputed those claims.

Meanwhile, Trump dodged a question about whether his rhetoric about migrants in Springfield may have fueled threats at schools and other buildings in the city. 

“We're going to have the largest deportation in the history of our country, and we're going to start with Springfield and Aurora,” Trump said during a news conference Friday at his golf club in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

Trump falsely claimed “20,000 illegal Haitian migrants have descended upon” Springfield. According to the city, while Springfield has seen a surge in population in recent years from migrants, it has come from legal immigrants who have chosen to live there. Haitians are eligible to apply for Temporary Protected Status, a designation given by the Department of Homeland Security, due to rampant gang violence in their home country.

During Tuesday night’s debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump amplified a conspiracy theory that Haitian migrants were stealing and eating residents’ pets. 

"They're eating the dogs, the people that came in,” he said. “They're eating the cats. They're eating the pets of the people that live there.”

But before the debate, Springfield officials had already issued a statement to media saying “there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.”

Since the debate, several schools and government buildings in Springfield were forced to evacuate or close due to receiving threats. 

Asked why he continues to spread misinformation about Springfield when there have been threats made, Trump did not give a direct answer Friday.

“No, no, no, the real threat is what's happening in our border, because you have thousands of people being killed by illegal migrants coming in,” Trump said.

Trump also has claimed Venezuelan gang members are taking over Aurora, including entire apartment buildings. 

Aurora officials issued a statement this week acknowledging police in the Denver suburb have arrested in recent months eight migrants believed to be associated with the gang Tren de Aragua and are seeking two others. It said their presence has been limited to a few properties.

“As for the perception and reality of public safety in Aurora, please understand that issues experienced at a select few properties do not apply to the city as a whole or large portions of it,” Mayor Mike Coffman and Council Member Danielle Jurinsky, chair of the council's Public Safety, Courts and Civil Service Policy Committee said in a statement. “TdA has not ‘taken over’ the city. The overstated claims fueled by social media and through select news organizations are simply not true.”

Also at the news conference, Trump refused to condemn Laura Loomer, a far-right activist and provocateur who attended several events with him this week, including 9/11 memorials and the presidential debate.

"Laura’s been a supporter of mine," Trump told reporters in response to questions about concerns from Trump's allies about their relationship. "I don’t control Laura. Laura has to say what she wants. She’s a free spirit."

He called her a "strong supporter" with "strong opinions" but claimed he was unaware of her comments, telling reporters he'd review them and "put out a statement later on."

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, two stalwart Republican allies of former President Donald Trump, joined a chorus of Democrats in denouncing the presence of far right activist Laura Loomer on the campaign trail with the GOP presidential nominee in recent days. 

Loomer had written on social media over the weekend that if Harris wins, the White House “will smell like curry & White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center.” In July, she called Harris a “drug using prostitute.”

Graham called Loomer “toxic” and said “I don’t think it’s helpful at all” for her to be around the former president in an interview with HuffPost, later adding she’s “a stain on society” in a statement. Greene, who is no stranger to conspiracy theories and bigotry, wrote on social media that “Loomer’s nasty, racist, and divisive rhetoric should not be tolerated” and that Loomer’s use of racist Indian stereotypes to deride Vice President Kamala Harris “appalling and extremely racist.”

Harris' campaign dismissed Trump's news conference on Friday as "bizarre."

"In a rambling, defensive, often incoherent event to promote his golf course, he yet again showed the country how he is melting down," Harris campaign spokesperson James Singer said, adding: "Americans are tired of Trump’s same old playbook and will reject him this November."

Spectrum News' Joseph Konig and Justin Tasolides contributed to this report.